Godzilla

Movie Monster

Born: 1954

Birthplace: The Movies

Best known as:

The movies' most famous city-destroying lizard monster

Japanese Name: Gojira

Once a low-budget movie monster and kitsch icon, Godzilla gained fresh fame with the release of the $100 million film Godzilla (1998, with Matthew Broderick). In the '98 version the monster tramples New York City, but in his earlier incarnations he attacked Tokyo or battled other made-up critters like Mothra, Megalon, the Smog Monster, and even the venerable King Kong. Godzilla is the creation of the Toho studios in Japan, which has featured him in nearly two dozen movies.